


The Wrong Side

by pcturtl



Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-25
Updated: 2015-05-25
Packaged: 2018-04-01 03:16:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4003777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pcturtl/pseuds/pcturtl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stolen from his destiny as an Assassin, the man who could have been Ezio Auditore instead becomes a Templar.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Wrong Side

-One-

There were whispers in the air about the presence of an apple, a Piece of Eden. With its power on their side the Templar order would gain the advantage in their war against the Assassins, enough to possibly even wipe the so called Brotherhood out of existence. In such a critical time, when their prize was so close at hand, there could be no mistakes. 

Thus a plan was formed, conceived to weaken the might of the Assassins while increasing their own. A child of the Assassins, once trained would be a great asset to their cause, and their enemy was so small in number that losing a single potential soldier would bring them at a disadvantage. It was a simple plan, to delay the father and drug the mother so as to gain access to the child, replacing it with one who had died in the womb.

Everything was going smoothly, especially as the child made no sound that could alert the mother of the treachery going on under her nose. This lack of sound became worrying, however, as a fear settled in on whether the child would live. It would be rather ironic, if they had replaced one dead child with another. And through his lack of life, this Assassin child would fulfill its birthright of foiling Templar plots.

But in the end, the child drew its first breath –a fighter then. As Rodrigo Borgia held the child in his arms for the first time, a name came to him. 

“You will serve the Templar order well, Ezio.”

-Two-

His trainers had always said it would be his compassion that would be his downfall. He was a fast learner, picking up skills that would take other men years of training and mastering them in months or weeks. He was a devoted disciple, eager to show off his skills and loving to please. No one could match him on the battlefield.

But the manner in which he did his missions was often frowned upon. Instead of taking the most effective route, there were times when Ezio went to painstaking lengths to avoid conflict. He was also flighty and didn’t take well to direct orders. No one could complain, though, as his mission record was impeccable. 

He knew how his mind worked, did his best to real in his poor habits and work for the well being of the Templar cause. This was why he should have known better than to take a look around the Villa Auditore. He told himself he was doing reconnaissance, in case his presence would be needed in the events planned for that night. He had seen Giovanni Auditore in action, and wanted to be prepared in case a fight broke out. 

All was going smoothly until he saw the youngest Auditore looking longingly at a pair of feathers, until he had gone out of the way to retrieve the feathers for the boy, until he had realized that a pair of feathers was a horrible consolation prize for a child about to die for his father’s sins. It was a stupid idea, to even preserve even some of the Assassin order when it was proven in the past that their creed would survive so long as even one was left alive. 

But he was just a boy…

It was that thought that had Ezio not so subtly suggest to the artist da Vinci that he could solve some of his financial issues if he offered lessons to his patron’s sons. It was that thought that ensured Maria and Petruccio would be at the artist’s home that night. That made it so Claudia received a false letter of apology from her fiancé so that she too would not be present when the Templars made their move.

He faced Giovanni alone, if he was sparing lives, he might as well spare those of the soldiers on his side. It was a relief seeing the eldest son, the only one in the Auditore family other than the father that he was willing to kill, leave on some errand. This would be a one on one battle between Assassin and Templar.

The man had asked for his name as he lay dying in his arms. A small smile arose when he revealed it to be Ezio. Apparently it was the name the man planned to give his second son, if the infant had lived to receive it. It was a pity to see the man die. For some indiscernible reason, Ezio felt a pain in his heart as the Assassin passed away. Foolish, given he had never seen the man before in his life. 

From there, a quick sweep with his special sight and a hidden door was revealed with papers that would have made the dead man a martyr. Without them, he would die a traitor; but without the false hope they presented, his family would be safe. Ezio felt the man would have preferred it that way though. He wondered at the consequences of his act of compassion.

-Three-

The demotion he received for disobeying orders and undoing the Auditore execution was expected. Because of his interference, Federico Auditore was able to sneak his family away to the relative safety of his uncle’s villa and the Assassin organization would survive another day. The death of Giovanni had only slightly lessened the punishment he had received, several lashings alongside his reduction in rank.

The worst part of it though was the fact that he was made subordinate to the figlio di puttana, Vieri de Pazzi. The two Templars had never been on good terms. The other man had always resented Ezio for his skills and standing in their order, and Ezio generally despised him for his attitude and underhandedness. Vieri would often attempt to cheat in the few challenges they had that pitted them against one another, and any attempts of reconciliation between them had ended in spilt blood.

The other man was clearly enjoying his moment of superiority over his temporary subordinate (and Ezio would ensure it was only temporary), leading him around the fortress with the intent to impress his father. The man’s joys were short lived though, with the arrival of Mario Auditore’s forces.

An order was barked at him to take care of the soldiers fighting below. Any chance to get away from his ‘leader’ was welcomed so far as Ezio was concerned. And so he joined the fray, losing himself in the thrill of battle. He wove his way through the crowds, killing as easily as he breathed, until he reached his target. It was a long fought battle, Mario being better in direct combat than his brother, but in the end Ezio’s skills won him the battle. 

Another pang rang through Ezio at the sight of the dying man. He didn’t know why it pained him to think of dead Auditore. They were supposed to be his enemies, not people for him to sympathize with. It was ridiculous that he should feel anything at all for the family.

With a heavy heart Ezio turned away from the dying man, just in time to see the blade of Federico Auditore slit Vieri di Pazzi’s throat. 

-Four-

The match with the now eldest Auditore was expected. It was only natural for the man to want revenge against the person who killed both his father and his uncle. The battle took place soon after the Pazzi conspiracy had been unraveled. Ezio had been unable to prevent this loss to his order, as he had been sent on another mission to help secure the apple at the time. His superiors thought it unwise to involve him with snuffing out the Auditore, unless it was strictly necessary. 

And so he found himself roaming Roma after a mission well done. He was contemplating the idea of hiring a courtesan or two when he unexpectedly ran into a Borgia messenger. The man looked up at him as if he was expecting to see the devil, only to crumple in relief when he recognized him.

“Oh, Ezio thank the lord!” The man looked close to crying in his gratitude. That was concerning.

“What’s the issue, signor?” Ezio asked, looking around for whatever was threatening the poor messenger.

The man’s sense of urgency returned at the mention of his prior distress. Hastily, a letter was shoved into his hands. 

“Take this to Rodrigo.” The man spoke. “It contains confidential information about an investor in Venice, information that could help further fund the Templar order if properly utilized.” His voice dropped at his last piece of information. “Do not let the Assassins get their hands on this, lest the money go to help fund our enemy.” And with that, the man took off.

No sooner than he left, did a man attack from the shadows. Ezio’s reflexes were fast enough to prevent the Assassin from doing any harm, but the attack was sudden enough that he found himself on the ground from the force of it. He quickly managed to roll himself into a defensive position before looking up at his assailant. 

Federico Auditore had a look on his face that spoke of his conviction. Under the surface there was a sprinkling of hatred for the man who had upset so much of his life, but Ezio could tell it was not merely vengeance that drove this man. He looked tired, as if he didn’t want to kill anyone, but would make an exception for the man kneeling before him. Ezio wondered what kind of a monster that made him in the Assassin’s eyes.

“You are the man who killed my uncle.” The Assassin watched warily as he accused him, but made no move to attack again.

Well if he wouldn’t move then Ezio will. It wasn’t a particularly threatening motion, but he could see the anticipation in the other’s eyes as he stood up and backed away into a position that would give him more room to move in case the other decided to pursue this battle to the end.

“And your father as well.” Ezio replied. If his opponent was looking to avenge his family, might as well tell him the entire story of what he would be avenging with Ezio’s death. From the look on the Assassin’s face, it seemed like he didn’t know about that piece of information. All of a sudden, the Assassin’s stance changed, filled with a newfound rage, he struck, but this time Ezio was prepared.

The other man was a skilled fighter, but his lack of experience spoke through his strokes. The other man was not used to fighting in a situation where he intended to kill his opponent. But it wasn’t as if Ezio hadn’t his disadvantages as well. If his opponent was untrained in fighting to kill, he himself had little experience in keeping an opponent alive.

For some strange reason he didn’t want the other man to die. He looked to be about Ezio’s age, maybe a bit older. The lines on his face were made by a man who smiled often, even if they were beginning to show his weariness at the situation he had been forced into. More than that, he fought with the conviction of a man with something to protect. It was something that Ezio could admire in a person, as he often wondered what it would be like to be consumed by an idea enough that he would live his life to see it fulfilled. What it would be like to fight for a cause he believed in. He wondered if the two of them could be friends, if they weren’t on opposite sides of this war between their two factions.

The fight ended with the Assassin beneath him with a blade pressed to his throat. The other man looked resigned to die when Ezio leaned in to whisper, “Show me that what you’re fighting for is worth your struggles.” And with that, he knocked the other man out with a blow to the back of his head. As he left, he paid a few florins to some nearby courtesans to take care of the passed out Assassin. It wouldn’t do to have him die so soon after Ezio had spared him.

-five-

He came into the workshop with the intent of stealing away some of the codex pages the Assassin had acquired. It was late at night, but Ezio did not account for the odd hours the artist seemed to keep. The man was wide awake and working on a project when Ezio snuck his way in.

Leonardo didn’t even look behind him when he heard the window open. “Ah, Federico! I’m sorry, Mio Amico, but I require a bit more time to finalize the designs on the…” When the man finally turned around he trailed off after seeing the man in his home was not the one he had expected. The artist quickly looked around to see if there was anything to use to his advantage against the unexpected intruder until recognition flashed in his eyes.

“You… you are the man who approached me the night Giovanni died.” Leonardo’s gaze on him softened just a bit. “It is because of you that Maria and Petruccio were not harmed that night. I owe you for that, if nothing else. Tell me, what are you here for?”

Ezio smiled a bit depreciatively. “You owe me nothing, especially if you find yourself friends with the Auditore considering I side with their enemies.” He made no move to approach the artist. His superiors had plans for Leonardo da Vinci after they acquired the apple, so it wasn’t as if he was allowed to harm the artist even if he had wanted to. Since he was here, and had made himself known, might as well finish his objective.

“However, if you would be so kind,” and with this Ezio flashed a grin at Leonardo, “I am looking for the codex pages written by Altair.”

Leonardo returned the smile, a bit sadly, before replying. “Even if I had the pages, I am sorry to say they are not mine to give away. Why do you need them?”

It was more than the artist needed to know. He was here for personal reasons, to see the creed of the Assassins for himself to know exactly what he was fighting against. What ideas he was disputing when he sided with the Templars. But at the same time, there was no one he could talk to about the doubts that he had, not without risking being labeled a heretic to his order and killed.

With that, Ezio gave his answer, “to learn.” It was the simplest response he could give without revealing too much of himself to a stranger. Something must have shown through on his face though, because after evaluating him for a minute, the artist made his decision. He started shifting through the mess in his workshop until he happened upon a pile of papers.

“This isn’t the original copy,” Leonardo spoke, “but I have kept the notes I have made while translating the pages.” 

The notes landed in Ezio’s hands.

“These are just philosophical pages, no hidden blade diagrams or assassination techniques, but I believe they will serve the purposes you are looking for. If you really are an enemy of the Auditore, I cannot give you the means to harm them, but the contents in those pages should answer the questions you have.”

A warm feeling suddenly overcame him and a genuine smile arose on the Templar’s face. He hadn’t expected the artist to give him anything, let alone the means to resolve his dilemma. “Grazie, for your help.” Now that he thought about it, this was the first sincere act of kindness he had ever had.

The artist paused for a moment, hesitating only for a second before pulling Ezio into an abrupt hug. “Regardless of your intentions that night, it is because of you that my dear friend and her son were unharmed. I do not know the details of your relations to the Auditore, but you do not seem to be a bad person.” Leonardo backed away, nearly giving a chuckle at the stunned look on his intruder’s face. “I hope you find what you are looking for.”

-plus one –

He had met Federico Auditore once more on the docks of Venice. Rodrigo had been driven away, leaving Ezio behind to cover his escape. He had put up the best fight he could, but in the face of so many Assassins, there wasn’t much he could do, especially as he found himself with no will to fight.

Having read the pages written by Altair, Ezio couldn’t help but feel as though he were born on the wrong side of this conflict. Nothing is true, everything is permitted… the words resonated in him. The ideals of the Assassin’s creed matched his own beliefs, it was a philosophy he felt he could live by unlike the strict obedience drilled into those who sided with the Templars.

But it was too late to change sides. He doubted the Assassins would welcome him with open arms given all the damage he had done to their brotherhood over the years. They had the apple, they had the advantage and Ezio was glad that even if he were to die, he could do so with the knowledge that at least he had spared whoever he could. With the lives of Federico, of Petruccio and Claudia, the beliefs he had come to appreciate would continue. 

He was ready to meet his fate.

**Author's Note:**

> I was really close to calling this 5 + 1 Reasons why Ezio Auditore is the worst Templar, which is what I called it when I posted it on the kink meme, but I thought that would ruin the mood of the story. Feel free to comment with what you thought (or if you found a typo or something that could be rephrased, I'm up for concrit)


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